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Friday, 29 July 2016

Rimmel London Sun Shimmer self-tan

As pretty much a fake tan virgin, I was both nervous and intrigued about trying this in-shower tan.

I am quite pale and the idea of false tans have always frightened me. I went to an all-girl's high school when I was younger and the halls were just filled with girls with Wotsit-coloured legs. Like, was it supposed to look like that?

Anyway, I've been extremely put off fake tan ever since, only ever having tried those gradual tan moisturisers and an ancient Benefit gradual tan one time. I saw this Rimmel in-shower tan in the shops and thought: maybe, just maybe, this could be a tan that even I couldn't balls up.

It was on offer in Boots for buy one get on half price (I think it still is) so I picked up a couple of bottles and went home to try it. I tested this out twice like a true scientist and learned from my mistakes the previous time. Here's my methods:

Attempt #1

The bottle says to wash like normal, put on the tan then rinse off. Simple instructions like this make me nervous. Nothing in life is this easy. Regardless, I showered like usual, slapped on the tan and rinsed it off. I then got out of the shower and patted myself dry, as it recommends.

There were no instant results and, maybe it was just me being naive, I thought the way you looked when you got out of the shower was the way it was going to stay. BOY WAS I WRONG. This shit develops like hell overnight. I was a bronzed (albeit quite patchy) goddess the next morning!!

To be fair, the colour and coverage off one application was pretty amazing - I was only patchy around awkward areas like my ankles and elbows. I applied it again in the shower the next evening, then by the morning after all my patchy areas had pretty much gone. The colour is more like 2-weeks-in-Greece as opposed to a-week-in-slightly-sunny-Wales, like most gradual tanners are.

I used it for about a week, getting constant compliments about my tan, before letting it wash off. A lot tends to come off in the shower but it's still pretty stubborn and did take a week or two before it was completely gone.

Attempt #2

So, when I was a fresh translucent canvas once again, I went ahead and tried the tan again, only this time I invested in a pair of exfoliating gloves.

I exfoliated the life out of myself before applying the tan, especially around my ankles where I'd had the most difficulty applying it last time. I have to say that this made so much difference, as I actually ended up with no patchy areas whatsoever.

The gloves also come in handy when getting rid of the tan as it definitely helps it wash off a lot quicker. Just be careful with exfoliating so much, though, especially if your skin is quite sensitive like mine. Don't scrub until it bleeds, obviously.

So, overall I really love this tan! I think the in-shower application is ingenious (also I know this has been done by other brands, so if you have tried another that you think is better, send some recommendations my way!)

Here are my collaborative pro's and con's:

Positives

* Really easy to apply - best to apply at night as the full results are visible the next morning. Absolutely minimal effort, which is great for me!

* Amazing colour payoff, even after one application.

* No biscuity fake tan smell!

* With re-applications, the tan lasts a good week or two.

* Easy to rectify patchy mistakes.

* Affordable (if I remember correctly, full price it's about £10).

* Readily available - I've seen it in most drugstores like Boots, Superdrug etc. as well as supermarket beauty sections.

Negatives

* Leaves a weird coating on your skin in the shower which goes away once you've patted yourself dry, but it kind of made me feel a bit sticky and tacky.

* Hard to tell if you've missed any areas before you wash it off and wait for it to develop, meaning it's so easy to end up streaky/patchy.

* The amount of product you get in a tube doesn't really go a long way, especially as to maintain the tan you have to reapply after every shower.

* I also found that the tan itself rubs off quite easily against clothes/shoes, which meant I ended up with stark white marks where my sandals had been!

* Lack of instructions/tips mean that tan noobs like myself obviously make some rookie mistakes! (I mean, I'm sure everyone but me knew you should probably exfoliate before a tan lol).

Despite any negatives, I'm still using this because I just think it's so convenient and easy to build a nice tan ready for a night out. Again, I urge you to hit me with any other brand recommendations you may have!

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